STRATEGY • MEDIA RELATIONS • CAMPAIGN BRANDING
Canadian Medical Association Apology to Indigenous Peoples of Canada
Service Areas: Communications, Media Relations, Engagement & Creative
Client
Canadian Medical Association
Year
2024
Since 1867, the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) has served as the national voice of physicians in Canada. In 2023, the CMA announced their intention to embark upon a reconciliation process with Indigenous Peoples and acknowledged their duty to hold themselves accountable for their actions and the actions of their members. As part of this process, a historical review revealed that the CMA contributed to systemically embedding and upholding anti-Indigenous racism in health care, thus creating an unsafe environment for Indigenous Peoples, patients and communities.
These findings also revealed that the CMA fell short of ethical norms and standards of the medical profession. With intent to respond to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s (TRC) Calls to Action with the hope of meaningful change in health care and in the relationship between physicians and Indigenous Peoples, the CMA developed a reconciliation action plan where one of the first steps was an apology.
In spring 2024, the CMA reached out to our agency to support them with a historic apology they were planning to deliver to Indigenous Peoples living in Canada. As an Indigenous-owned, led and majority-staffed communications agency, we would be able to offer our unique cultural lens to bolster their apology initiative. As part of our work, we supported the CMA with issues management and media relations support. Specifically, we developed an issues management strategy, provided strategic advice and editorial support for the apology, developed key messaging and a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document . We also delivered media training and provided media relations support. The apology was delivered live on September 18, 2024 at a 90-minute public ceremony in Victoria, BC, and livestreamed on the CMA YouTube channel.
Shani and her team at pipikwan pêhtâkwan were valued partners on the CMA’s apology to Indigenous Peoples. Given the sensitive nature of the apology, their guidance was indispensable in helping to ensure the appropriate tone and language in all communications, and to reaffirm that Indigenous Peoples and perspectives were centred in our work, our words and our images. A full-service comms shop, pipikwan’s design team co-developed beautiful Indigenous-specific branding for the project, created a thorough crisis communications plan, and helped us promote the event to their vast network of Indigenous media, all within very tight timelines.
-Marni Kagan
Approach
Based on our experience with other clients, we know that sensitive topics like this have the potential to trigger Survivors and their families, as well as all Indigenous Peoples. To mitigate this, we used trauma-informed language in all communications materials that we reviewed and drafted for the CMA. This concern carried over to our work with the media, who may lack understanding of trauma. We provided the media with a trauma-informed language guide to support their coverage of the apology. We also ensured all media messaging was trauma-informed to minimize the risk of harmful messaging within media coverage.
In the communications leading up to and at the apology, we emphasized that CMA needed to centre Indigenous Peoples. This apology was a first step in rebuilding CMA’s trust with Indigenous Peoples -- language should be compassionate and the CMA needed to demonstrate accountability. Often, governments and organizations make promises to Indigenous People in the name of reconciliation, only to fail to fulfill those commitments, which leads to distrust. It was key for CMA to communicate the reconciliation work was being informed by Indigenous CMA board members, Indigenous staff, their Indigenous Guiding Circle and conversations with national Indigenous organizations. By being trauma-informed, centring Indigenous Peoples and being transparent about the process, CMA was in a better position to build trust with Indigenous Peoples.
Creative
The artwork for the apology was inspired by the healing connection to land and water that we all share. Each element was created with gentle intention, conveying the serious commitment the CMA intends to make to Indigenous Peoples. Water begins the journey, flowing forward and creating new pathways. The ripples created by the traditional medicines (tobacco, sage, cedar, and sweetgrass) symbolize the impact of the words and actions of the CMA on future generations. Water holds memory; however, it cleanses and heals through its feminine energy.
The land-based elements acknowledge the diverse Indigenous Peoples within Canada. The medicines represent healing, cleansing, and ceremony and are used by Indigenous Peoples in different ways from East to West. The berries branching out, blooming, and spreading roots symbolize the ties, relationships, and ongoing collaboration. The plants wind in and out of the stitch elements, representing the human touch, gathering, and creation. These unique elements bind us together, whether First Nations, Métis, or Inuit and symbolizes the beginning of creating a bundle.
Outcomes
It was an honour to be able to support the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) with this historic apology. Not only were we entrusted as a team to help them, we were able to support them in setting a standard for other organizations across Canada to show what true reconciliation looks like.
The apology received significant coverage:
8,000+ views of the YouTube livestream within 24 hours
1,892 media mentions within 24 hours
The most syndicated story came from The Canadian Press and was widely picked up by online outlets: Canada's Physicians Formally Apologize for Harm to Indigenous Communities
Coverage tone mixed critical and optimistic views, balancing a sober reflection on the history of harm, racism, neglect, and abuse towards Indigenous communities with optimism and hope for positive change in the medical system regarding indigenous health issues
Apology was independently streamed by CBC News, CTV News, and APTN
CBC National, CBC Vancouver, Global BC, Globe & Mail, APTN, Black Press, CTV, CHEK News, Victoria Capital Daily and Victoria Times Colonist were in attendance.